Where does “凧” come from?

凧 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 烏賊, from Chinese 烏賊 — cuttlefish.

凧 (Japanese): kite a tethered object lifted by wind

Definitions

  1. kite a tethered object lifted by wind

Ancestry of “凧”, step by step

凧 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 烏賊

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese烏賊a squid, a cuttlefish
2Chinese烏賊cuttlefish

via Japanese 幟

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese幟flag, banner
Every word from Chinese 烏賊 →Every word from Japanese 烏賊 →